Arkansas names starters for weekend games in Houston.
FAYETTEVILLE — The University of Arkansas will go with a pitching rotation of right-hander Connor Noland, lefty Patrick Wicklander and righty Kole Ramage in that order this weekend at the Shriners College Classic in Houston.
The No. 5 Razorbacks (7-0) will take on Oklahoma, Texas and Baylor in the tournament, starting with Friday's 3 p.m. game against the Sooners.
The annual classic is being billed as an SEC vs. Big 12 showdown this year as it will pit Arkansas, LSU and Missouri from the SEC playing one game each against the three Big 12 clubs.
Coach Dave Van Horn announced the pitching rotation on Wednesday, the day before the Razorbacks will get an evening practice at Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros.
Ramage (1-0, 2.84) has already appeared in three games, twice as a reliever.
“If you look back at kind of what we did with Kole, we brought him out of the pen the first weekend and didn't pitch until Sunday,” Van Horn said. “Then, we asked him to start again on Thursday then brought him out of the pen on Sunday.
“We just feel like he
deserves an opportunity to be more fresh and show us what he can do. So we're going to give him all this week. He's not going to pitch in the games on Friday and Saturday. He'll start for us Sunday.”
Noland (2-0, 1.42) and Wicklander (2-0, 0.00) have both been tough through two starts, with WHIPs (walks plus hits divided by innings pitched) under 1. Blake Adams, Ramage and Caleb Bolden started the Razorbacks' other three games.
Arkansas has not trailed during its 7-0 start. The Razorbacks scored in the first inning of all three games against Eastern Illinois and jumped ahead of Gonzaga each day during its four-game sweep at Baum-Walker Stadium last week.
“It's great for the team,” said Wicklander, who will pitch Saturday's 7 p.m. game against currently unbeaten Texas. “If we do trail this weekend, I'm excited to see how we bounce back from it. But overall, it's great knowing we have the lead. We just have to keep throwing up zeroes as a staff.”
First baseman Cole Austin wasn't aware the Razorbacks had not trailed yet.
“Credit to our offense,” he said. “As soon as we get to the plate, we're hammering balls, getting guys in when they need to get in and then our pitching has come in and they're putting up zeroes and we're playing good defense. If we can keep that up this weekend, it'll definitely help us out a lot.”
The Razorbacks rank 17th nationally with a .314 batting average and ninth with 1.57 home runs per game.
Austin, a transfer from West Virginia and Arizona State, said he'd never been in an offense this potent.
“It's funny because we were talking about how we feel we haven't even been clicking on full cylinders yet and we're still averaging eight or nine (runs) a game,” Austin said.
“We're definitely excited to see how we're going to do each game when everybody's clicking on full cylinders, everybody's comfortable at the plate.”
The Razorbacks' 2.14 ERA is tied for 27th in the country.
“We go in and throw strikes, throw up zeroes,” Wicklander said. “Even when we don't have our best stuff, we're still limiting the damage, throwing up zeroes and basically getting it to the next guy to close out ballgames.”
Wicklander started and pitched four innings in the Razorbacks' 11-4 win at Texas last March 19. He was staked to an 11-0 lead through the top of the fourth before giving up four runs in the bottom of the fourth.
He expects to see much the same lineup in Houston.
“I don't think it's going to be a whole lot different,” he said. “I know they added one or two freshmen that are starting. But overall I know they're a very experienced, veteran club. They'll be good. I've got a few buddies over there I've been keeping up with. It's going to be a good club. Not a whole lot has changed in the past year.”
The Razorbacks split two games against the Longhorns last year. They lost a 4-3 exhibition game in 14 innings against Oklahoma last Sept. 20 at BaumWalker Stadium.
“As far as them physically and how they play the game, it just gives you a little bit of an idea,” Van Horn said.
“You can look at video all you want, but when you get on the field with somebody, it's usually a little better.”
Arkansas and Texas (9-0) both enter the classic unbeaten. Oklahoma is 7-2 with single losses to Virginia and Illinois State in their first and last games, respectively.
LSU has a 5-3 record, while Baylor and Missouri are both 4-3.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette uses the USA Today Coaches poll for rankings references throughout the season.
That poll does not update its preseason rankings until after the third week of the season.